I can't live without, I'll rely on him. I love you and Micah, but you have your own lives to worry about. So do Gage and Caine. If things get really bad, I promise I'll ask for help, but for now, I'm fine."
Mel hoped that was true. She really didn’t believe that someone would hurt her. Unknown was a lot of things, but a hot bed for criminals wasn’t one of them.
#
“What’s Micah doing here?”
Caine looked up from the clipboard he was studying to find his brother standing next to him. Baseball practice was in full swing, the boys throwing balls back and forth, most of them managing to catch the ball rather than chasing after it. “I invited him and Jax to watch practice. He said the other day that baseball is one of the only ways to drag Jax out of his room and away from his Nintendo.”
“Maybe next year we could get him to coach the coach-pitch team. With him running things, we might get a dynasty started.” Gage’s eyes lit with a plot. He always got that look right before he dragged Caine or Micah into a scheme that ultimately ended up with them doing all of the work. Typical younger kid.
Caine walked over to greet his friend. “Hey, man. Glad you could make it.”
Jax took in the scene on the field, brown eyes wide with delight. “Do all these kids get to play baseball? On your team?”
Caine laughed, tugging on the bill of the kid’s oversized, brand new hat. “Yep. Most of ‘em started when they were your age and will keep on playing through high school. Baseball’s a pretty big deal around here. But I bet a city boy like you doesn’t think much about baseball.”
“I love baseball!” Jax insisted. The animation on his face was unusual, from Caine had heard around town. “Dad used to take me to see the real Rangers when they would play the Yankees. They’re awesome.”
“Glad to hear you’re raising the boy right,” Gage said, coming over to them. “We were worried he’d like those darn Yankees.”
Micah and Gage shook hands in greeting. “No son of mine would like those sell-outs. Hard work over money, any day, right?”
Caine and Gage both snorted at that.
“Right,” Caine said. “Go take a seat on the bleachers. If y’all stick around ’til the end of practice, we can throw some pitches to the little guy, see how he does.”
Micah snorted. “With your fan club?”
He groaned. At every practice, a small group of single mothers or mothers and their single friends congregated on the bleachers to ogle Caine and Gage. They never resorted to outright wolf whistles or catcalls, but he’d started to have sympathy for what male strippers had to put up with.
They rounded out practice by having the kids run a race around the bases. Caine always got a kick out of how the smallest thing could make little boys hyper-competitive. He remembered the drive to be the best, to show the other guys that he was just as tough as them. He’d always had the extra determination to prove that he wasn’t just the rich boy from the big house. Being just one of the guys had taken work and a lot of help from Micah, but he’d managed. At least until his grandpa died and his parents sent him away.
Still in a cast, Teddy Allen refused to leave until they let him pick up all the stray balls and gloves.
“Can I help?” Jax asked the older boy.
Teddy smiled and nodded eagerly. Poor kid. The boys his own age teased him and wouldn’t invite him to play with them outside of practice. He’d take any friend he could get, even a five-year-old.
Caine joined Micah on the bleachers, leaning back against the row behind him. Thankfully, the fan club had cleared out at the insistence of their overexcited sons. “How’re things at your place?”
“Not bad.” Micah mirrored his pose. “Bakery’s doing well. Mom’s too busy fretting over Jax and Mel to try to interfere too much.”
Mel. He couldn’t blame Emma for worrying about her. Caine still tossed and turned at night, worrying that whoever had trashed her car and the clinic would decide to hit her apartment next. “How’s Mel doing? Can’t be easy for her to settle in and deal with everything that’s been going on.”
“Hell, I don’t know.” Micah’s dark eyes were heavy with concern. “Gotta admit, I’m worried about her too. And it’s not just the car and the